Living with Diabetes and living as a single person ?

Status
Not open for further replies.
T

Taffyboyslim

Well-Known Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 2
Maybe it could be easier than some of you guys who are in a family . Or maybe it's going to prove to be more of a challenge ? I certainly intend getting all I can from my local GP .
 
Taffyboyslim said:
Maybe it could be easier than some of you guys who are in a family . Or maybe it's going to prove to be more of a challenge ? I certainly intend getting all I can from my local GP .
Click to expand...
Your diabetes is your responsibility, no one else's, so can not see what difference living on your own makes.
Local GP's are a waste of space in most cases regarding diabetes, after all they have to have some knowledge about everything and anything under the sun so hardly surprising they would have any in depth knowledge about diabetes.

As you are here using the forum, make good use of it as very doubtful you would find as much knowledge or advice anywhere else.
Bottom line is you have to help yourself.
 
Pumper_Sue said:
Your diabetes is your responsibility, no one else's, so can not see what difference living on your own makes.
Local GP's are a waste of space in most cases regarding diabetes, after all they have to have some knowledge about everything and anything under the sun so hardly surprising they would have any in depth knowledge about diabetes.

As you are here using the forum, make good use of it as very doubtful you would find as much knowledge or advice anywhere else.
Bottom line is you have to help yourself.
Click to expand...
Well firstly as diabetes is a chronic illness then like other chronic illnesses it's likely to be more difficult to deal with as someone who is single than someone who has the support of a family around them . I certainly don't think the difficulty it may present in day to day living should be dismissed .

As for my GP service , one of them is listed as the practice diabetes doctor so I hope she has some extra knowledge of the condition .

On the wider issue of responsibility and helping oneself that's why I have joined the forum . But I am aware of my failings .
 
I've been living on my own since march, have had no trouble diabetes wise, more so the feelings of loneliness. Coming home from work to an empty flat and so on.
 
Taffyboyslim said:
Well firstly as diabetes is a chronic illness then like other chronic illnesses it's likely to be more difficult to deal with as someone who is single than someone who has the support of a family around them . I certainly don't think the difficulty it may present in day to day living should be dismissed .
Click to expand...
I've had type1 for 57 years and live alone. Left home at the age of 18 and now in my 60's. I can assure you diabetes is a lot easier to deal with on your own rather than everyone else giving their unwanted/unhelpful input 🙂

Taffyboyslim said:
As for my GP service , one of them is listed as the practice diabetes doctor so I hope she has some extra knowledge of the condition .
Click to expand...
Ah optician visit needed to replace rose tinted specs lol. I can assure you the extra help wont be available as diabetes is labelled as self inflicted, thus you are now a 2nd class citizen. And in all honesty the GP's have so much on their plate dealing with life threatening conditions that need immediate attention. So as I said learn from the forum and the very knowledgeable members, you will go far.

Taffyboyslim said:
On the wider issue of responsibility and helping oneself that's why I have joined the forum . But I am aware of my failings .
Click to expand...
I wasn't pointing the finger at you :(
Everyone has to start somewhere and small steps will get you a very long way. Forget the blame culture and move on with your self care. The lack of diabetes care in the UK is outstanding :(
Once you have your blood sugars down to normal your mood will also improve as having high numbers does tend to leave people feeling very black.
 
I find living alone makes it easier to manage my diabetes. I don't have anything in the house that would tempt me to eat the wrong things, and I don't have anyone else to cater for. I have my cat for company and make a point of contacting one of my friends every day, or going out to one of my group exercise classes. My iPhone has my diabetes history and medication on it as well.
 
Taffyboyslim said:
Maybe it could be easier than some of you guys who are in a family . Or maybe it's going to prove to be more of a challenge ? I certainly intend getting all I can from my local GP .
Click to expand...
I'm in Wales as I hope you are too.

I'm hoping because it may be you will have a similar GP practice to my own.

Mine has a GP with a specialism in Diabetes and he is excellent and doing research into how to reverse diabetes.
In my case he approved a blood glucose monitor and strips early after my diagnosis when I said I wanted to control my diabetes by dietary choices only with no meds and after I had made some good strides in that direction already.
My Diabetes nurse offered me various helps and groups to join which I chose to turn down because I get on better on my own and 'peopling' stresses me out.

They have been very supportive of my keto strategy and very pleased with how it has turned out for me.

They have given me exactly the support that I personally needed and that has mostly been nothing other than the yearly eye, feet and blood checks ( liver, kidneys, blood pressure and hba1c and cholesterol ) and supplying my monitor and strips and agreeing to me doing without meds.

As for whether it is easier with or without a family around you it depends on the family.
Some people have lovely supportive family who will help and join in with getting rid of carby foods and developing a healthier lifestyle.
Some people have a family that has tons of unhealthy habits, dysfunctional stressful behaviours and they actively undermine the person's efforts to get healthy.

Pro for being on your own - you can get rid of all the foods that cause you difficulty and just have the foods that are fine for you and nobody will be chomping away on the stuff you love and can't have and saying things like 'go on a little bit or just this once won't do any harm surely?'
It also means you can make your own choices without having to factor in other people's needs and requirements - even in the best families that can get complicated and a bit tiring now and then.
I think once you get into the swing of it you will find dealing with diabetes (if it is straightforward type 2) okay and the being on your own part will be no more or less tricky than it was before you knew about the diabetes.
 
I think this is another one of those things where we are all different that diabetes emphasises.
I love being alone, having no one to answer to and no one to judge me.
I also love having a partner to share household responsibility with.
I can see pros and cons for being single and for being part of a family.

I think the important thing is to be able to ask for help when you need it and to be able to ask for time alone when you need it.
It is not a good idea to compare the needs of others with your needs. We are all different and that does not make us weak.

The other thing that is different is the support we get from our GP. Personally, I see no value telling someone to expect nothing because they have not had a good relationship with their GP. It is not fair on the person looking for help or GPs in general.
 
helli said:
The other thing that is different is the support we get from our GP. Personally, I see no value telling someone to expect nothing because they have not had a good relationship with their GP. It is not fair on the person looking for help or GPs in general.
Click to expand...
With respect GP's are run off their feet, so it's very difficult to give any help except give a leaflet and point to a forum. This is obvious from all the comments posted on this forum.
From OP's comment I had the impression he expected the GP to be at his beck and call and this wont happen.

GP's are just not geared up for day to day management of someone's diabetes and that's hardly surprising is it, esp after Covid and the ongoing problems with it.
 
The amount of support people get from their GPs varies considerably throughout the country, some good, some bad, but you often only hear of the poor ones. I was surprised that there are over 58,000 registered diabetics in the health trust where I live, no wonder GPs are overwhelmed. Apparently only 25% had actually had their annual checks and I suspect those were the proactive ones who have their condition managed well.
I prefer to regard it as a condition rather than an illness.
 
I think whether it would be easier or more difficult to live with diabetes on your own is very much an ‘it depends’ question.

Depending on the sort if person you are, I’d imagine it might make some things more difficult, and other thing easier.

As examples:

Wholesale changes to menu, eating habits or what snacks are or aren’t available in the house would not be complicated by the needs of others.

Similarly activities and the rhythm of life could be tailored entirely around your own needs and preferences.

But other things might be trickier if you are the sort of person who benefits from the encouragement and accountability of having housemates, significant others or family around you.

And of course there would be others to keep an eye out, and to share tasks and responsibilities so you might have more time to focus on yourself.

My guess would be a bit of both (some things more difficult, some things easier) it would depend in no small part on how you were as a person.
 
everydayupsanddowns said:
I think whether it would be easier or more difficult to live with diabetes on your own is very much an ‘it depends’ question.

Depending on the sort if person you are, I’d imagine it might make some things more difficult, and other thing easier.

As examples:

Wholesale changes to menu, eating habits or what snacks are or aren’t available in the house would not be complicated by the needs of others.

Similarly activities and the rhythm of life could be tailored entirely around your own needs and preferences.

But other things might be trickier if you are the sort of person who benefits from the encouragement and accountability of having housemates, significant others or family around you.

And of course there would be others to keep an eye out, and to share tasks and responsibilities so you might have more time to focus on yourself.

My guess would be a bit of both (some things more difficult, some things easier) it would depend in no small part on how you were as a person.
Click to expand...
Diabetes is a chronic illness and like other chronic illnesses I think whatever type of person you are it's made tougher to deal with if you are isolated .....and to an extent all single people are
 
Pumper_Sue said:
With respect GP's are run off their feet, so it's very difficult to give any help except give a leaflet and point to a forum. This is obvious from all the comments posted on this forum.
From OP's comment I had the impression he expected the GP to be at his beck and call and this wont happen.

GP's are just not geared up for day to day management of someone's diabetes and that's hardly surprising is it, esp after Covid and the ongoing problems with it.
Click to expand...
Expect gp to be at my beck and call ?

Absolutely not .
 
helli said:
I think this is another one of those things where we are all different that diabetes emphasises.
I love being alone, having no one to answer to and no one to judge me.
I also love having a partner to share household responsibility with.
I can see pros and cons for being single and for being part of a family.

I think the important thing is to be able to ask for help when you need it and to be able to ask for time alone when you need it.
It is not a good idea to compare the needs of others with your needs. We are all different and that does not make us weak.

The other thing that is different is the support we get from our GP. Personally, I see no value telling someone to expect nothing because they have not had a good relationship with their GP. It is not fair on the person looking for help or GPs in general.
Click to expand...
My GP practice has forwarded me the name of one of the partners .....there are 12 .....who is designated as the gp practice diabetes link .......so I have made contact with her and if I can manage my condition with some guidance from her and others .......everyone's a winner


Thank you
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top